The invention relates to devices used for sleeping inside of automobiles with more than two doors. More specifically, the present invention pertains to a hammock-like apparatus that allows the user to sleep inside of an automobile by being suspended above all of the seats, with the front driver and passenger seats reclined.
Many common passenger automobiles do not provide a comfortable place to sleep. Road warriors and travelers alike drive while they are sleep deprived and exhausted due to the lack of comfortable sleeping options. The driver can pull off the side of the road and sleep in the reclined front seat and risk the potential for back and neck pain, he/she can rest in the back seat which does not provide enough room for the average adult to lie down without bending his/her knees or neck, or purchase, a hotel room for the required resting period. The driver's unwillingness to sleep in the front seat or lie down in the back seat due to the uncomfortable nature of both options coupled with the potential lack of funds for a hotel room result in the driver operating the automobile in an exhausted altered state in order to reach his/her destination where a comfortable sleeping situation awaits. This altered state driving could endanger himself/herself as well as other driver's on the road. It would be advantageous to be able to set up a sleeping apparatus that goes on the inside of one's automobile that provides a comfortable sleeping platform where an average adult, male or female, can lie down and rest in the security of his/her own automobile.
There are sleep devices for use in and around automobiles that are set up on the roof of an automobile, adjacent to an automobile, or in the bed of a truck. However, these devices do not use the structural integrity of the automobile to provide a suspended sleeping apparatus inside the automobile nor do they provide the protection from weather conditions that the user's own automobile would. Furthermore, these devices are located outside of the automobile
Sleep apparatuses may also be located inside of a cab or passenger compartment. These devices usually contain a sleeping platform that rests on or coincides with the existing seats in the cab or passenger compartment. However, these devices confine the sleeper to the space between the doors or walls of the compartment where the user must lay parallel to the automobile's axels and thus creating an uncomfortable situation for any user whom may be taller than that space provided. Also, these devices would not be applicable to the user of a common passenger automobile such as a four-door sedan for as the center console or armrest would prohibit the device from lying flat. And the device would be unnecessary in the back seats because there is no partition where these devices would be needed. It would be advantageous to provide the user with a comfortable sleeping position that was not restricted to the width of the interior of the automobile and that is applicable to common passenger automobiles.
Suspendable sleeping apparatuses for use in a automobile are also known. U.S. Pat. No. 4,331,424 to Eiserman, discloses a hammock-like sleeping device which suspends between the doors of a semi-truck cab. However, the Eiserman device would not be useful for a common passenger automobile due to the variation of clearance from the seats and center console/arm rest to the top of the window where the device is secure. If used in a common passenger automobile, the Eiserman device would sag so low that the user's body would touch the center console/arm rest or would leave the user's face very close to the automobile's ceiling, both downfalls render an uncomfortable sleeping scenario. Also, the Eiserman device only has two anchor points on the automobile which could damage and compromise the structural integrity of the automobile, especially if the weight inside the device is greater than 300 pounds, and may leave automobile unsafe to operate. The Eiserman device also does not enclose the user inside the automobile which could result in injury to the user if he/she would fall out of the device while sleeping. By suspending the user between the doors of the automobile, the Eiserman device restricts the length of the sleeping apparatus to the distance between the two doors. This does not provide ample sleeping space for an average adult male or female, especially when the device is being implemented in a common passenger automobile. It would be advantageous to provide a suspendable sleeping apparatus that could be used in common passenger automobiles where the user was not restricted to lying down by the space between the doors and was secured inside so the user does not fall out. Furthermore, it would be advantageous to have more than two anchor points on the automobile so the weight inside the device is distributed more evenly so as not to damage the automobile and compromise the automobile's safety. It would also be advantageous to have a suspended sleeping device that could suspend over most of the automobile's interior so the user could comfortably lie down perpendicular to the automobile's axels and not be touching the center console/arm rest or the automobile's seats.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,117,691 issued to Bishop is an updated version of Eiserman's device that entails a suspended sleeping device for use in vehicles, horse trailers, semi-truck cab's, and also for use in alternative environments such as a free standing frame assembly or stand. Bishop's device has similar disadvantages to Eiserman's device when using the device on a common passenger automobile like a four-door sedan. When attaching it to an automobile, Bishop's device suspends between two doors of the automobile and contains multiple anchor points on the automobile's door, door frame, and window allowing the user to set it up while inside the vehicle via access to the door and window. The strength of the window and door frame on a common passenger automobile may come into question when supporting a large person or two people.
Bishop's device can be adjusted with two ratcheting buckles that adjust the tension in the device which would raise and lower the user to the desired height. However, because the anchor points are at the top of the window and door frame, the user's head would be very close to the ceiling of the automobile which is not a comfortable sleeping scenario. Also, ratcheting buckles, although they may seem simple to the familiar user, can be a bit tricky and confusing to a person who has never used one before. Bishop's device is adjustable to take in account for users of different heights. However, since the device is suspended from door to door and the user lays parallel to the automobile's axel, the width of the automobile restricts the length of the sleeping device and the center console/arm rest would limit the adjustable sag in the apparatus before the user is resting on the automobile's interior, especially in a passenger automobile like a four-door sedan. Similarly, since Bishop's device has a limited width and is restricted to the width of the window and door frame, it would be very difficult for more than one person to sleep in the device. Since Bishop's device is secured by the doors and windows of the automobile it may cause a safety hazard to the user if there was a sudden need to escape the automobile, such as a fire. In case of a fire or other endangerment inside the automobile the user would be suspended in a device that ties the doors together, ensuring a slow escape because the user would have to undo the suspended sleeping apparatus in order to use the door. It would be beneficial to have a device that was independent of the doors and windows and did not restrict the doors from opening while the user is lying in it. It would also be advantageous to provide a suspended sleeping apparatus that suspends over the automobile's interior, with the front seats reclined, that allows the user or users to sleep perpendicular to the automobile's axels or diagonally across the interior space and thus utilizing more space above the seats. It would also be beneficial for the device to anchor to the exterior of the car where the highest point of the sleeper material is near the middle of the windshields allowing the user to sleep above the automobile's interior but without being uncomfortably close to the ceiling of the car or resting on the center console/armrest of the interior. Also, for ease of use, it would be advantageous to use tension adjusting devices that the average adult is familiar with such as a side release buckles and ladder locks that can be found on a book bag, hiking pack, or dog leash/collar.